Op-Ed: Former SAS Operator’s opinion on ‘How the elections will effect security in the UK’

Politics has never done it for me. I have always gone with what the majority have decided. As a soldier if I voted for a party which never won, I would have trouble fighting for them. If I stand up for what the majority of people want, then I have purpose. That theory is fine until one of the candidates has a history of collaborating with terrorist organizations which went up against the Crown. That’s right I am not making it up.

The Labour Party is led by a man who still to this day refuses to condemn the actions of the IRA. The same man openly stood firm and mourned the loss of eight terrorists who were killed by my former unit as they attempted to murder security services in a Northern Irish police station. No wonder he is unhappy with a so-called “shoot to kill policy” because if there was such a thing, it would be against the very people he has colluded with. For the record, I have never heard of anyone being issued a firearm and receiving a brief telling them to tickle people with it.

The “shoot to kill” thing was invented by people who wanted to try to convince the public that we were being harsh by fighting fire with fire. This man wanted to decrease the numbers of armed policemen and has said on tape that if he needed to, he would not use nuclear force. No wonder then on this particular occasion I have been extremely vocal in trying to dissuade people in voting for the said man who I genuinely believe has other agendas which are detrimental to our way of life. In a country where known terror suspects repeatedly kill people because our laws are not robust enough to stand up to them, the last thing we needed was a guy steering the ship who sympathizes with them.

How did it pan out then? Well the Labour Party aimed their campaign at the vulnerable and made promises which would have been impossible to keep. They teased the youth with promises of free schooling and better opportunities. They went into the poorer areas and promised to improve the health service. Their leader, to be fair, was good at public speaking and gave rousing speeches focussing on an unrealistic manifesto. The conservatives failed in every department to impress anyone and their leader refused to debate and struggled to answer simple questions.

It was clear to everyone involved she was up against the ropes and the left-wing jumped all over it in what looked like a great payback for them losing the Brexit polls. Veterans watched on in horror as the future of the country was being decided by the youth who have are too young to remember the struggles and sacrifice of our troops. And had been brainwashed by a man who realized they would settle for anything which improved their lot. Troops who had served all over the globe in defense of this nation weren’t being heard. It seemed that the masses would sooner choose to vote for a party whose interests failed to recognize the real issues of the age. We have a major security issue here in the UK. Some would even say we are at war. Other than the usual routine after atrocities, nobody had really mentioned how we are hoping to deal with it.

The other parties fell into insignificance as far as the front-runners were concerned, however Labour thought that should they fall short on numbers the other liberals would jump straight in bed with them. By the time the votes were, in the exit poll had a shock result on the cards. It looked like we may well get a man as PM of this country who MI6 had said should he apply for any job within the security services he would fail for security reasons. You could not make it up. As the votes came in and were counted, the Labour position became stronger and stronger. Conservative seats were falling at an alarming rate. The PM had done too little too late. As I got to the gym this morning at 0500, it looked like the country was doomed to have a maniac. It was a daunting thought and I felt sick to the bone. For the record I have no drama with many of the policies presented by Labour if they could back them up. I take issue with the man in charge who has in my opinion committed treason against this nation.

The numbers were finally in and it was to be a hung parliament. If the liberals stood cheek to cheek with then Labour Party then we had a massive problem. The rescue came from the very people opposed to the Labour leader himself. The DUP from Northern Ireland the very people whose community suffered at the hands of the IRA for so long made no hesitation in shoving the knife into the heart of the liberals charge. They backed the conservatives giving them the majority and enough for the PM to keep her place at number 10. She has apologized for such a weak campaign and although her opposition is calling for her to resign she has refused.

Corbyn, in his deluded way, is celebrating what he sees as a victory even though he has been well out-voted by the majority. May is counting her lucky stars. The country feels unsure of its future and there remains a huge terror threat. I hope that priorities are sorted and we steady the ship before we start sifting through all the mundane stuff. May is in the chair by the seat of her pants and I hope she now stands up to terror and implements whatever measures are required to sort things out. As for Corbyn the fact that even his own have shown distaste at his principles, coupled with no other party wanting anything to do with him as far as a coalition was concerned, my hope is that he will crawl back under the stone from whence he came. I doubt it.

About the Author

Phil Campion
Phil Campion is a veteran of military operations in just about every conflict-prone corner of the world. He served with the Royal Hampshires, passed through Commando and Parachute Regiment selection, before being badged with 22 SAS. He left the British Army in his early thirties, with the rank of Staff Sergeant, and started working on the private military circuit. He lives in Southampton with his partner, Wendy, and three children. He is a fluent Spanish speaker and continues to work as an operator on the private military circuit.
Phil’s first book, Born Fearless: From SAS to Mercenary to Pirate Hunter – My Life as a Shadow Warrior, was published by Quercus in September 2011. His first novel, Desert Fire, following the exploits of ex-SAS operative Steve Range, was published by Quercus in September 2012, and the second in the Blackstone Six series, Killing Range, followed in May 2013. Phil’s most recent book, Big Phil Campion’s Real World SAS Survival Guide, was published by Quercus in May 2014.

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Thomas S

Honestly, I have no idea what schools teach these days. It certainly isn't math, science, history, reading/writing or any practical skills. I don't know that they even bother trying to teach people about being a citizen and the rights/responsibilities that go along with.
People these days leave our education system (including university) without a single skill someone would want to pay them to do.

tim e

Excellent post - the ignorance you see today is stunning.

Yankee Papa

.
...The vote is power. Results of votes are guns. Think not? People elected make laws... if all else fails those laws are enforced with guns. If the laws are good there are few problems... if they are bad...
...Campaigns that encourage "everybody to vote" are both silly and dangerous. People should be encouraged to educate themselves on issues and then vote... but too many people either just vote a straight party line... or get whipped up by whoever tells the most convincing lies.
...One quarter of all Americans, Canadians and Brits believe that Astrology is a science. Worse... "Millennials" achieve a 50% belief that Astrology is a science.
...Half of all college graduates in the U.S. never reads a book after college unless it is work related, or "Valley of the Dolls" level drek. Journalism majors in colleges in the U.S. periodically embarrasses their institutions (if not themselves) by failing (multiple choice) "general knowledge" questions. (It seems, according to them that Heinrich Himmler invented the Heimlich maneuver...)
...Historian who worked at a top newspaper... written about politics and military affairs. One of the reporters asked him if Marines served in the Pacific in WW2. Roughly half of all high school graduates in the U.S. in the past generation could not tell you what the word "Appomattox" refers to. Maybe one in ten could tell you who Dred Scott was.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7d63a0a7304331a1b7478d0a79aed960c7f84e8d6e4f899c835d144d78d2a45b.jpg
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3c187b38566a943fb01ddb13d36d985ffcf0690e4a3b213d0c4c9d598e95eb0f.jpg
-Yankee Papa-

Txazz

Excellent article, Phil and so many of of here in the states were praying and holding our breath with you! I agree May better get her eyes open and kick some butt!

Susan B

I wish your nation well, Phil. It has been pummeled during this election season just as ours had suffered for the past few elections. When you have to hold your nose to vote for one in order to keep the other out of the position, then there is a major problem with the parties putting forward those candidates. Hopefully, it will get better in your nation. Hopefully, things will look brighter in ours. It seems divisions are cropping up in so very many areas in the western world.